The March Update to Fusion Suite 2024 is Here!

The March updates to Fusion Suite 2024 are now available, bringing innovative enhancements and powerful, unprecedented functionality. Fusion Suite refers to the Freedom Scientific software products JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion.

Visit the What’s New pages for JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion 2024 to learn more about this exciting new software. Enhancements you’ll want to begin using right away are Picture Smart AI and Increased xFont Support.

Picture Smart AI

While navigating the digital landscape, you might encounter photos, charts, and other visual elements without an alternative description. This can make it challenging to understand the information provided by the visual content. The JAWS Picture Smart feature, introduced in 2019, allows you to analyze a photo using a layered keystroke. A description of the image is displayed in the JAWS Results Viewer window. For example, after pressing INSERT+SPACEBAR, P to activate the Picture Smart layer, you could press F to describe the currently selected image in File Explorer, or C to describe a photo from a social media website like Facebook.

Picture Smart AI is a revolutionary update to the traditional Picture Smart feature. By integrating with the latest artificial intelligence (AI) technology from services like Chat GPT from Open AI and Gemini from Google, you will now experience a whole new level of accessibility to graphical information. While you access Picture Smart as you have in the past, you will be amazed by the depth and richness of the visual descriptions Picture Smart AI now offers.

Picture Smart AI is currently available as an Early Adopter Program feature. We encourage you to try it and provide feedback using the “Send Feedback” form that is available in the Early Adopter Program dialog box.

To enable Picture Smart AI:

  1. Press ALT+O in the JAWS program window to access the JAWS Options menu. Press E to select Early Adopter Program.
  2. Press the TAB key to navigate to Picture Smart with Generative AI, and press SPACEBAR to select the checkbox to enable this feature.

Note: If you clear the check box, you return to the traditional Picture Smart functionality.

Press the TAB key to navigate to OK and press ENTER, then restart the software to begin using Picture Smart AI.

We are excited that JAWS is the first screen reader to provide on-demand image descriptions to all users. Visit the What’s New page for JAWS and our new JAWS Features page for details and sample photos that demonstrate the expanded  functionality. Learn more about Picture Smart AI in this video.

Increased xFont Support for ZoomText and Fusion

We have made improvements to xFont, our advanced font smoothing technology. In our December 2023 update, we introduced xFont support in Office 365 apps as an Early Adopter Program feature. In our March 2024 update, xFont is no longer under evaluation and is now on by default. You can experience xFont in the following areas of ZoomText and Fusion: 

  • Toolbar text and icons
  • Settings dialog boxes
  • Messages and notifications
  • Tools such as AppReader and Background Reader

In addition to supporting Word, Excel, and Outlook 365, xFont is now available in PowerPoint and OneNote 365.

To use xFont, you must start ZoomText before opening any of these Office 365 apps.

Download the March Update of Fusion Suite 2024

To download and install the March update of JAWS, ZoomText, or Fusion 2024, follow these steps on a computer connected to the internet:

  • Select any of the following links to automatically download the software update:

JAWS, ZoomText, or Fusion.

Note: Optionally, visit the Freedom Scientific website and locate these links under the “Software Releases” section at the bottom of the page.

  • Save the setup file to a location where you can easily locate it (for example, your Downloads folder).
  • Put the focus on the setup file, and press ENTER to run it.
  • Follow the installation instructions that are displayed. The language automatically matches that of your operating system.

Note: If you are running the latest version of Fusion Suite 2024 and automatic updates are enabled, you can start the download and installation process from that notification.

Our User Education and Outreach team offers outstanding resources for learning your Freedom Scientific software in our Training Center, which includes videos, FAQs, and instructions for getting started. Watch this blog and check out the Freedom Scientific Training schedule page for news of upcoming live training webinars and other events. For questions, email us at Training@vispero.com.